Love and Schemes
by KrisEleven
Summary: A collection of one-shots from my submissions to Goldenlake's SMACKDOWN. Aly and Taybur were never meant to fall in love, but 'meant to' had never stopped either one of them... a love story told in snippets.
1. Only a Kiss

A/N These one-shots and drabbles were written as submissions for Goldenlake's SMACKDOWN. It is an ongoing competition where pairings are matched against each other in a (quite epic) battle of which side can produce the most fiction featuring that couple. I have posted the other selection of stories I wrote for the Aly/Taybur pairing under the title 'Two Spies are Better than One'. This group of stories are based off the idea of a romance between them, and follows a basic chronology. However, I think my liking of canon and Nawat have shown through and the pairing is remarkably morose. More cheerful canon-based friendship fics are over in my other story! However, I do enjoy some of these, they're based heavily off various Damien Rice songs, and I hope you read them.

This first one takes place some time after the rebellion, perhaps two years or so after the events of Trickster's Queen.

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_It started out with a kiss, how did it end up like this? It was only a kiss... it was only a kiss. _Mr. Brightside, The Killers.

They laughed uproariously, Taybur falling back into the arm of his chair as he held a stitch in his side. As Aly continued to go through the _disastrous_ meeting Dove had had with the Tyran ambassador, Taybur suspected she was getting pleasure out of the fact that they were all suffering pain from the amount of laughter she had been inducing.

"Oh, no," Eyun gasped. "He couldn't have _possibly_..."

"Yes, he did. Thenthat trollop from Maren that he keeps as a mistress, she comes up to him _in the middle of the meeting_ and I thought... but, no, you'll never guess it." Aly jumped up, still steady on her feet, although Taybur noted that she had drank nearly as much of the wine as he had, and he was feeling distinctly light headed.

She walked over to Taybur and draped herself across his chair. Her pack and the few men Taybur had brought to this informal welcome-home tried unsuccessfully to smother their laughter as she linked her arms around Taybur's neck and pulled him in close.

"Good morning, my darling," she said in a Marenite accent and a twitch of her hips against his leg. She leaned forward, pressing herself against him and kissing him directly on the mouth. She was gone again before he could react, and he heard the group howl with laughter, but it was muddled by a buzz in his head.

"In the middle of the meeting! You should have _seen_ Dove's face."

It had been less than a minute that she was pressed against him and the kiss had lasted only a second, but Taybur had to force himself to keep the smile on his face as he listened to her recounted Dove's reaction. It was only part of her story, it meant nothing...

But the kiss lingered, tingling on his lips for the rest of the evening. And when he walked back to his rooms, alone, all he could feel was the warm press of her body against his.


	2. Miles of Mountains

_What I am to you is not what you mean to me. Give me miles and miles of mountains and I'll ask for the sea. _Volcano, Damien Rice.

Aly smiled as Taybur lifted Junim up onto the ledge, and held onto the child's legs so he wouldn't fall as her son looked up into the nest on the low branch in wonder. She didn't have many friends who were as good to her family as the Captain of the Queen's Guard was, and she would do anything for him.

Taybur looked over at the mother of the child he held and the fond smile on her face should have made him happy. Instead, he had to look away, back at the nest and Junim's joyful expression. There was love in that smile, but it wasn't for him. And although he would do nothing to damage the friendship they had, he wanted _so_ much more.


	3. To Travel in Time

A/N These have been put out of order in order to follow events in the order they would have happened, if this was canon. So, this and chapter two are the last two I wrote, hence their shortness. I was engaged in a struggle of phenomenal proportions with the Thayet/Buri writers in the last half hour or so of the competitions. They won. Probably because this story never managed to get posted. :)

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"Do you ever think back to how it all could have turned out?" she asked. "Everything could have been different if only one thing had changed. If one conversation hadn't played out. If one scheme had been foiled. If one person wasn't in the right place at the right time. Everything could have been lost."

Taybur knew she was talking about the rebellion, but he nodded because he knew the feeling intimately himself.

They had been together, alone, in the garden and he had told her he had no intentions. The next time he had talked to her, she was promised to a young soldier who moved like a crow.

He knew very well what one missed opportunity could mean.


	4. Cheating

This is part one in two connecting stories about the beginning of their romance. I do like Aly. Cheating-Aly, not so much. There's some lovely Aly-Taybur fiction over on Goldenlake that isn't so darn depressing... not that I don't want you to keep reading this. There's bunnies here for you. And rainbows. I promise*. I would consider this story rated T for some sexual content, so skip it if that is not something you want to read.

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_Leave me out with the waste, this is not what I do. It's the wrong kind of place to be cheating on you._ 9 Crimes, Damien Rice.

His hand buried in the hair by her temple, holding her head closer to his, his kiss becoming more passionate as her hands unbuttoned his shirt, fumbling in haste. Aly had never felt this need before, but this was not the man she had sworn she would love for the rest of her life.

She didn't care.

He was too tall for their embrace to be comfortable for long, and his hands left her face to wrap around hips, picking her feet off the ground so their faces were on level.

Aly hadn't meant for her flirtations with the man who had fascinated her from their first meeting to go so far.

As they struggled free of the rest of their clothing and fell onto his bed, she knew it was too late for her to plead righteous intentions. The result was the same, and it would kill Nawat regardless of her innocence in the first moves made tonight.

And she really didn't care.

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*The author of these stories promises no such thing.


	5. No Excuse

A/N This story should also be considered rated T.

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_It's the wrong time but she's pulling me through. It's a small crime and I've got no excuse and is that all right? _9 Crimes, Damien Rice.

Her slim, smooth leg twinned between his, her foot resting on his calf as she lay on her side in his bed, sleeping peacefully. Taybur had thought he would never see her like this – without defences made from all her lies, he meant. He had never thought he would see her naked in his bed, either, or sleeping with her cheeks and chest still tinted pink from their activities... But here he was, propped up on one elbow to watch her sleep in just that state.

He knew she had been surprised when he had responded to one of her usual quips by leaning forward to where she was seated on his desk and pressing his lips against hers. He remembers thinking that this would end it, at least. It would end the flirtations that he longed to be real, it would even end the friendship they had forged, but since he couldn't _have_ her that might be best after all, though it would kill him come morning.

He hadn't expected her to lean into him and return his kiss, her movement nearly as frantic as his.

There was a problem that Taybur refused to acknowledge, even as he brushed a gentle hand over her face, smoothing red-blonde hair back from her face.

Now that he had had her, he knew he would never let her go.

It was a problem for the morning. Right now, Taybur just wanted to watch his spy sleep.


	6. Killing Me

_And I just can't look; it's killing me._ Mr. Brightside, The Killers.

Their stolen nights never sustained him during the day, and it was always worse when Nawat was home.

At least when her husband was away from the castle, Taybur could pretend that they were staying apart through choice. Though their interactions never hinted at their relationship, he could see it as more of a game than a secret. And at night, it was his bed she would crawl into, keeping him awake until dawn with her kisses and questing hands and gasps.

When Nawat was in Rajmuat, she didn't dare sneak away for the night. Worse, he watched them together, holding onto his mask of indifference with a control that broke more each time he was forced to endure Nawat's hand on the small of her back, or the casual way he could kiss her in front of others, or the passion in both of their eyes as a hand lingered on a thigh or waist.

And, in the end, he would always leave. Sneaking out from whatever meeting they were in together, he would go to his rooms alone and swear that this was the last time he would do this to himself.

But then Nawat would leave, and there would be a knock on his door. And he could never say no.


	7. Alibis

A/N I like Dove. This is why she gets to be sensible in this series when no one else does. :D

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_Choking on your alibis_. Mr. Brightside, The Killers.

"Will you be there tonight?" Dove asked, watching her spymaster's reflection closely. It was difficult to see Aly's face, partly because two of her maids were partly blocking her view as they prepared her hair for the evening and partly because Aly moved about the room, picking up small things left lying in the open and not meeting the knowing gaze of her younger friend.

"Oh, probably," Aly said casually. "I have so much paperwork on my desk that it is liable to collapse at any moment, and I should rein it in, if only to save Quedanga the stress on the treasury of replacing it."

"I always seem to lose the friendly faces in the crowd in packs," Dove commented. "Nawat's away, you are chained to your desk and Taybur has sent word that there is something he finds it imperative to attend to tonight."

Aly didn't look up, but Dove couldn't be sure that it was to avoid her gaze or simply because the trinket in her hand had caught her attention; her expression seemed normal and open.

"You have plenty of familiar faces, Your Majesty," she replied, her tone slightly teasing. "And I may be able to spend time with you, before dinner. I will try."

Dove didn't ask whether or not her spymaster and the captain of her guard would be spending the night together because, though nothing Aly had told her had been the truth, none of it had been a lie, either. If she asked, Dove was sure Aly would lie to her.

And that was something, for so many reasons, Dove wouldn't be able to ignore.


	8. What I Really Need

A/N I was writing something for the Gary/Raoul pairing that is coming up at the end of March while trying to get all my Aly/Taybur fics up, so Raoul ended up making a sort-of guest appearance.

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_What I really need is what makes me bleed and, like a new disease, she's still too young to treat_. Volcano, Damien Rice.

It was hard to let go of something that filled an emptiness inside. Even when you knew it was something you couldn't keep.

Aly had heard the stories from her Uncle Raoul about his drinking and how it had ruined his life. Her Uncle Thom was a common enough topic around Pirate's Swoop, and her ma told her children about the dangers of obsession.

Aly had thought she'd have the strength to give up something before it destroyed her.

But as she ran into Taybur's arms and turned up her face for his kiss, she knew she wouldn't give this feeling up for the world.

Once you felt the emptiness, once you recognized it, it was impossible to embrace it again.

And Aly would follow this into the darkness, regardless of the consequences that awaited her.


	9. Need to be Free

A/N Damien Rice is so full of angst. Poor Damien should stop dating married women he has no business canoodling with. Oh wait, that's Taybur. Dammit, Taybur.

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_We do what we need to be free and it leans on me like a rootless tree_. Rootless Tree, Damien Rice.

Taybur didn't mind the first time he had to lie about where he had been in order to cover for him and Aly. His friends in the Guard didn't question him when he told them he was too tired, or had paperwork, or had forgotten about their arranged meetings until they stopped asking and began to just leave him alone.

Aly thought the lies wouldn't be a problem. She lied to everyone, after all. And although she felt a twinge when she told Dove or Nawat that she was going to be busy for the night, it didn't stop her from doing it, and it never lasted long. But when Nawat's face lit up when she walked into a room and he leaned forward excitedly to press a light kiss to her lips, she felt like her stomach was wringing itself out inside her.

They lay together in the dark of Taybur's room, both awake and staring at the ceiling as they shared a bed without touching. It was worth it, for what they had.

It was worth it. It was.


	10. Lie

Taybur begins to see sense. Aka I could write on the same theme only so long. :D

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_Tell me if you want me to lie, but this has got to die. I said this has got to stop. _Elephant, Damien Rice.

Taybur paced in the darkness of his room, trying to calm his racing thoughts with movement. Perhaps, if walked long enough he could forget the restless thoughts that kept him awake.

Running his fingers roughly through his hair, he knew it was unlikely that he would sleep tonight. Again.

Taybur had always thought himself an honourable man. Even after all the court but those in the conspiracy shunned him for standing aside and letting the rebels enter the Grey Palace when he had been charged with the protection of Imajane and Rubinyan, he had known that what he had done was right. He had done everything in his power to protect King Dunevon, he had served Queen Dove faithfully, and he would put the best interest of the Isles before his own every time, until he died.

He couldn't reconcile that with the man who, just moments ago, finished dressing and opened the door for a married woman to slip out into the corridor.

_But I love her_, he thought.

He had always been honest at least to himself, even when the cesspit that was the Rittevon court had forced him to lie to others. She was Nawat's wife. She was the mother of Nawat's children. And Taybur knew that, yes, he loved her, but she could never be his.

He had always thought of himself as an honourable man.

He would pace until the sun had broken the horizon.


	11. Why

_Why'd you fill my sorrow with the words you borrowed from the only place that you know? And why'd you sing hallelujah if it means nothing to ya? Why'd you sing with me at all?_ Delicate, Damien Rice.

She slipped around the corner with one quick look back, to make sure no one had noticed her passage and followed after her. It would have to be Kyprioth's doing to grant her the bad luck that would lead to someone following after her into _this_ meeting.

Turning down another dark passage, she opened the correct door and walked inside. As soon as the door was shut behind her, he was there. She reached out to him as his arms circled her waist and she felt herself lifted up against his chest. Throwing her arms around his neck and wrapping her legs around his waist, Aly clung to Taybur as if she had been drowning.

It took a moment for the overwhelming joy of their embrace to pass enough that Aly sensed a difference in the way he held her. His arms were always strong, but this time he clung to her. His kisses were always passionate, but tonight they had the edge of desperation. He had the feel of someone who was saying goodbye.

Aly pulled away from him, adjusting her Sight so she could see through the darkness.

"What is it?" Aly asked, pulling further away, suddenly awkward, though they had been _much_ closer than this in the past few months. She felt Taybur sigh and then he was setting her on the ground and took one step back from her. The distance between them because of that tiny movement seemed suddenly insurmountable. She crossed her arms over her chest. Part of her mind began to wail, already aware of what was coming, but she shut it out until his hoarsely whispered words brought her world down around her.

"Aly, I can't do this anymore."


	12. Most of the Time

_And so it's just like you said it should be. We'll both forget the breeze... most of the time. _The Blower's Daughter, Damien Rice.

She saw him from across the room, but, then, how could she not? She was always wary when guarding her queen, and he was difficult to miss with his height and build. Aly told herself that was the only reason and ignored the ache she felt that told her she missed him.

It was better this way, truly.

He saw her note his entrance to the hall and just as quickly return to scanning the room for dangers and told himself that the pain in his chest was nothing, and surely not over the fact that she had forgotten him so quickly. It wasn't that Taybur wanted her to pine after what he had ended; he wasn't so selfish as that. But when he spent nights pacing the corridors and his days playing over their every moment together, the fact that her gaze hadn't even lingered cut worse than he wanted to admit.

But soon, Taybur was able to sleep through the night and spend time thinking of something other than the look in her eyes when she was with him. And soon, Aly found the rhythm of her new life with her husband and children and weeks would pass without her thinking of how he had been waiting just inside his door to pull her into an embrace.

And if, when it happened that they passed each other in the corridors or met in a meeting hall to report to Dove, that their gazes lingered too long or flicked away too quickly, no one noticed. And they found little time to regret what they had most definitely lost, but perhaps should never have had in the first place.

(But that doesn't make it hurt less, does it?)


	13. Suffocate

A/N This is AU from my AU. At this point I had written 20+ Aly/Taybur stories and I hated both of them. Good way to leave off this series? Probably not. But this is the moral of the story: don't cheat on your spouce and don't get involved with a married woman. Seriously. Have you seen all the angst this series produced? Do you want to be part of that? No. So behgave yourselves.

:D

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_I could take every little word she said and throw it in her face. Would she even care? I still remember when she looked at me, a frown upon her face, trying to be sincere. I gathered all those little things she said and kept them close to me, trying to make this real_. Suffocate, Cold.

Taybur had thought that it was different between them.

Yes, he watched as she lied to her husband and her queen and all of her friends time and again, and he did so with amusement. It wasn't like that between them, after all. Because she loved him. She had told him so.

She told him she had paperwork to finish. When Taybur went to her office with a plate of food, he was surprised to see her and one of the messengers, her arms thrown around his neck and their lips meshing together.

Taybur slipped away without saying a word.

The next morning, when he asked how her paperwork had gone, her small smile hit him like a punch.

He had thought it was different between them


End file.
